Tag: softball

Softball welcomes new Assistant Coach Katrisha Arocha

The softball team is proud to announce the hiring of Katrisha Arocha as an assistant coach. Arocha graduated from OLLU in 2015 with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology after playing two seasons for the Saints.

Head Coach Bruce Lenington commented, “I am very excited to welcome one of the most decorated Saints pitchers back home to the Lake!  Her unique experience and mental toughness, both as a player and now a coach, will help all of our players as we pursue a championship.”

Arocha is a San Antonio native. She attended NCAA D1 Mississippi Valley State University and NCAA D2 Texas A&M University – Kingsville before transferring to OLLU for the 2014 season. She was the first softball player to earn NAIA All-American honors, and she did so in 2014. Her other awards include National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) NAIA All-Region Second Team in 2014 and First Team in 2015; NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete in 2014-2015; Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) All-Conference in 2014 and 2015; RRAC Pitcher and Newcomer of the Year in 2014; five RRAC Pitcher of the Week awards in 2014 and three in 2015; and RRAC Scholar-Athlete recognition in 2014 and 2015.

She holds the following Saints records: career ERA (1.79); season ERA (1.54), season shutouts (7), season wins (26), seasons pitched (191) and season strikeouts (247); and most innings pitched in a game (12) and most strikeouts in a game (19).

Arocha led the Saints to their first RRAC Regular Season and Tournament Championships in 2014; the team competed in nationals, where they played in the opening round. She also led her team to its first-ever NAIA Scholar Team recognition in 2014.

After her playing years, Arocha has coached pitchers of multiple ages, several high school sports, and travel softball.

Arocha said, “I am thrilled to be able to contribute to the success of the current softball program by sharing my knowledge and experience with the Saints student-athletes.”

The Saints will begin their 13th season in the spring of 2022 but will play a handful of scrimmages during the fall. Home games will be played at the OLLU Softball Field, which recently has received a multitude of upgrades and renovations throughout the complex.

Alyssa Rojas joins the OLLU softball team

The softball team announces the addition of Alyssa Rojas to the 2021-2022 squad. Rojas is a native of San Antonio, where she attended Business Careers High School.

Head Coach Bruce Lenington commented, “We are thrilled to welcome Alyssa and her family to OLLU. She is a versatile player who can play many positions and has a combination of power and speed at the plate.”

Rojas is a shortstop and catcher, and she bats and throws right-handed. In high school, she was named to the Second-Team All-District for two consecutive years and First-Team All-District one year. The 5’1″ incoming freshman enjoys painting, shopping and baking. Her athletic role model is Jose Altuve.

The Saints will play a handful of scrimmages in the fall of 2021 and get set for their official season in spring 2022.

OLLU SOFTBALL ADDS TRANSFER STUDENT DOMINIQUE RODRIGUEZ

The OLLU softball program has signed transfer athlete Dominque Rodriguez. She will join the Saints for the upcoming 2021-2022 academic season.

Rodriguez comes to OLLU as a junior from Grayson Junior College (GJC) in Denison, Texas. GJC finished the 2020-2021 season with an outstanding 49-7 record and lost in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Championship game. The 5’6″ infielder attended Wakeland High School in her hometown of Frisco, Texas. She earned First Team All-Conference honors and will be majoring in education. Rodriguez’s hobby is spending time with her family.

Head Coach Bruce Lenington commented, “We are very excited to welcome Dominique to San Antonio. She is a proven winner and plays the game with an enthusiasm that is refreshing. She will be a pleasant sight in Saints blue this fall.”

The Saints have added nine total players for the 2022 spring season, including five transfers.

Cierra Gutierrez joins the softball team

The softball team is proud to announce the signing of Cierra Gutierrez from Trinity Valley Community College. Gutierrez is a native of San Antonio, where she attended East Central High School

Head Coach Bruce Lenington commented,  “The softball program is happy to welcome Cierra back to San Antonio to finish her academic and athletic career.  She is a very solid catcher who competes consistently in the box.  She will be a great addition.”

Gutierrez’s stats include 52 games played, .290 batting average, .333 on-base percentage, 38 hits, 31 RBIs and 17 runs. She added one home run, two triples, and nine doubles.

The Saints finished the regular season third in the Red River Athletic Conference, and in the conference tournament, they ended their season as semifinalists. Their overall record is 26-18 and 12-6 in the conference. The official season for the team will be in the spring of 2022.

Softball adds transfer Kristee Salas from Edinburg

OLLU has announced the addition of Kristee Salas to the softball team. She is a native of Edinburg, Texas.

Head Coach Bruce Lenington said,  “I am very excited to welcome Kristee and her family to OLLU.  She fits the culture we are trying to achieve perfectly.  She is a dedicated, hard-working player that wants to compete every day.”

Salas’ stats include 48 games played, .466 batting average, .544 on-base percentage, 61 hits, 64 RBIs and 52 runs. She tallied seven home runs, four triples and 21 doubles.

The Saints finished the regular season third in the Red River Athletic Conference, and in the conference tournament, they ended their season as semifinalists. Their overall record is 26-18 and 12-6 in the conference. The official season for the team will be in the spring of 2022.
 

Cassie Valdez added to the 2022 softball team

Transfer student Cassie Valdez will join the 2021-2022 softball team.

Cassie Valdez, who is transferring from Texas State University, is a native of Brownsville, Texas. Her career stats include 30 at-bats, one run, seven hits, two doubles, one home run, 10 RBIs, slugging percentage of .400, an on-base percentage of .333 and a fielding percentage of 1.000

Head Coach Bruce Lenington commented, “I am thrilled to be able to welcome Cassie and her family to the Saints family.  She is a powerful hitter and pitcher and will strengthen us both offensively and defensively.  Can’t wait to see her in OLLU blue!”

The Saints finished the regular season third in the Red River Athletic Conference, and in the conference tournament, they ended their season as semifinalists. Their overall record is 26-18 and 12-6 in the conference. The official season for the team will be in the spring of 2022.

Southern Illinois transfer Becca Duran joins OLLU softball team

OLLU welcomes Becca Duran to the softball team. Duran is a transfer from Southern Ilinois University and attended Akins High School in Austin, Texas.

Head Coach Bruce Lennington commented, “I am so happy to welcome Becca back to Texas!  She is a very gifted infielder that has a great balance of speed and power at the plate.  I fully expect her to make an impact on our program.”

While at Akins, Duran was her team’s Defensive Most Valuable Player and a first-team all-district selection as a senior.

Duran was a 2019 NFCA Second-Team All-American at Odessa Junior College. She is a middle infielder and batted .464 with 20 home runs and 65 runs batted in, plus 11 stolen bases. At Southern Illinois, she played in 20 games and had 42 at-bats, three runs, nine hits, one home run and seven RBIs.

The Saints finished the regular season third in the Red River Athletic Conference, and in the conference tournament, they ended their season as semifinalists. Their overall record is 26-18 and 12-6 in the conference. The official season for the team will be in the spring of 2022.

OLLU softball team signs San Antonio native Julianna Alvarado

The OLLU softball team announced the addition of Julianna Alvarado. She will join the Saints for the 2021-2022 academic year.

Alvarado will be graduating from nearby John Jay High School. She plays both the infield and the pitcher position and will be majoring in biology. While in high school she received the character award and AB honor roll. Alvarado was also named defensive MVP. Her hobbies include reading and watching anime. Alvarado’s athletic role model is former softball collegiate All-American Keliani Ricketts.

Head Coach Bruce Lenington said, “Julianna is a local talent who was one of our first commitments in the 2021-2022 class. She has a great attitude, and we are looking forward to seeing her in Saints blue.”

The Saints finished the 2021 season with a 26-18 overall record and a 12-6 mark in the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC). Lenington led the team to the RRAC Tournament semifinals and will enter his third year at the helm in 2022.

OLLU SOFTBALL STAGES A COMEBACK TO PREVENT SWEEP BY LSU-ALEXANDRIA

OLLU softball team trailed 0-3 through the seventh inning of the third game against LSU-Alexandria (LSUA) on April 10. The Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) opponent, which is second in the conference at one-and-a-half games behind league-leader Texas A&M University – Texarkana, defeated the Saints the first two games of the three-game conference series 2-1 and 5-1. Hoping not to be swept by the Generals, the Saints prevailed to make a comeback in the top of the seventh to score four runs. Ciera Martinez (SR/San Antonio, Texas) started in the circle and was relieved at the bottom of the third by Angela Ramirez (JR/Converse, Texas). Martinez came back in the bottom of the seventh inning to replace Kelly Anne Salinas (SO/Laredo, Texas), and she was able to prevent the Pilots from scoring to give the Saints the 4-3 win.Salinas earned the win, while Martinez took the save.

Head Coach Bruce Lenington said, “I was really proud of the way our women battled all weekend, but putting up four runs, in our last at-bat to get a win, says a ton about the growth of our team.”

See game details on the Saints website.